Yarn controlling and tensioning mechanism



y 19.51 J. P. WILSON 2,554,286

YARN CONTROLLING AND TENSIONING MECHANISM Filed Sept. '7, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Maiy 22, 1951 J. P. WILSQN YARN CONTROLLING AND TENSIONING MECHANISM Filed Sept. 7, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Inventor cferzzes Pa zzZ WZ-S' rz gAk-W Patented May 22, 1951 "UNI TED .ST'ATEFS OFFICE YARNCON TROLLIN G A'ND TENSIONING MECHANISM ;.8;Claims. .1 :This invention relatesto: an automatic .yarn l or-thread controlling and tensioning mechanism particularly adapted for use with knittin ..machines of the rotary :type employed. tor knitting hosiery :and wwhich I is interposed between .the source of Supply-f the yarnorlthreadtand the position where thethreadis engaged .bytheknitting needles for maintaining a substantially uni- 1 form. tension onthe=yarn .or threadand t0..com-

.pensate .for. pul1.-. exerted on .the...thread after it ..is. engagedby a..-.knitting:.need1e .which. is. mov- ..ing in a-circular .path.

. More. particularly, .it is a primary object of .the present inventionato. :providea. yarn .controlling and tensioning mechanism..haizingautomatically operated. means for. releasing gripping. elements .between which thethread passesandbywhich it isirictiOnallyeengaged to: preventianexcess pull being. exerted. thereon; and which might-possibly break. the thread .to..thereby.provide. .a. control and :tensioningdevice which is. a djustable. for, yarns rand..threadsoidifierent strengths .and which, will positively prevent an;excess..pressure vfrom being applied. to. the yarn. sufiicientto cause. a breakage thereof thus afiording ..a..mechanism which :Will function without:possibility;..of breaking of the .threaclaof :yarn, which .is; common .with other mechanisms forqcontrollingthe thread-and which necessitates :.the;-.1stopping of .the knitting mavchineuntil .the. break 1 can be; repaired.

.Still a furtherobiectof. the invention is to pro- 4 videea yarn; controlling-and tensioning device of -extremely:simplemonstruction capable of being economically manufacturedgand sold and which .zWill bevery durable and efiicient in operation andwhichqis readily capable .-.of being adjusted to -.adapt it for .usewith yarnsof different strengths.

-Vari0us other objectsand advantages oithe invention will hereinafter become more fully apparent from the following descriptionaof the .drawings, illustrating .a preferred; embodiment thereof, and wherein:

Figure l is a side-elevational view ofthe yarn controlling and tensioning mechanism l igure 2 is an enlarged top planview there- Of;

Figure 3 is-a diametrical sectionalviewtaken .substantially along aplane as indicated: by the -.-1ine'3.3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken substantially along a plane as indicated by the-line 44..of Figure.- 3, and

Figure-'5 is an exploded perspective view of qlcertain .of the parts of. the mechanism.

Referri-ng-more specifically-to theJdrawingsy the yarn tensioning-and controlling mechanism -i-n= its -'-entirety is designatedgenerally hand is adapted to -bemounted above-a; knitting machine -as:illustrated immy copending U. S. patent ap- "plicationSerial-No. 44,04l,"filed August 13, 1948, "nowPatent No; 2,523,460; September'26, 1950 and includes a -lower bobbinsupporting p1ate= 8 :and arr-upper, tensioning-and controlling mechanism supporting plate 9. The plates -8 and 9. are mounted one above the otherforrotary movel ment as a unit; on a 'spindle H] which may be rotatably supported. and: driven. in:- any. suitable mannersuch as illustrated in my aforementioned co -pending application; the lower plate 8 being secured I to the.-spindlel"l 0 in any. suitablemanner and the upper -plate? Q'being secured .to..a collar II which is fiXed /to ,.,an..upper portion. of

the spindle I 0.

The lower supporting. or.v bobbin. carrier plate: 8 is providedwithxa plurality ofspaced upstanding spindles. I2:.eachn adapted. to rotatably and. detachablyl-supporta bobbin 3 on which yarn .or thread. I 4 .is. wound in a. conventional. manner.

The uppercontrol mechanism supporting. plate :9..mounts aipluralitygofiyarn controlling and ten- ...sioning mechanisms, zcomprising .icorresponding units ;each designated; generally ll 5 and .which project upwardly. therefromand .are disposed .in .circumferentia-lly spaced .relationship there- ..around. .The uppersupportingplate 9.is provided with an automatic. yam controlling and tension- .ing;unit l5:to-:function.=.with each of the bobbins Bland: as saidunitslBareeach of identical con- .cistruction, 1a descripltion of: one ofsaid units will suflice for all since. each...unit;l5 functions com- ;.plete1yj independently of; each: of, the. other units.

.AsaseemzinxlligureZ2,z..the-xunits I5 extend genv.era'l lyin .a directionrradiallyzofz..the upper plate 1 land each;-includesa p.ost.1.orstandard l6 which is videtachablyz: supported ;on :and. rises from the plate 9 adjacentthe periphery thereof and which :is provided witlra restricted threaded stem ll at .its shank end,as;seen inFigu-re. 3, which extends throughean opening -I 81 in the plate 9 and to the lower end of which-isattacheda nut 9 for de- .tachablysecuringthe post it to the plate 9. .The

spostl6 :isprovided withan enlarged head 25 at its' upper endi-having; a--diametrioa1 bore-2i extending therethrougln for aypurpose which will ,=.hereinafter beoomecapparent. .--Each post it supportsyaspair. of yarn grippingelements including a-lower .diskelikaelement 22- and an upper diskalike .elementn23, -each"'of-=which is. dished. .The

-:-elements=; 22..and :23 are provided with centralinping elements 22 and 23 are normally disposed in abutting engagement. As illustrated in Figure 3, the flanged opening 25 of the upper gripping ele ment 23 is somewhat larger in diameter than the post I6 to permit said upper gripping element to be rocked relatively thereto, a seen in Figure 3, for a purpose which will hereinafter become apparent. The post I6 carries an expansion coiled spring 26 thereon between its head 20 and the upper gripping element'23 for normally retaining .said gripping elements in substantiallyparallel relationship, as illustrated in Figure 1.

The upper plate 9 is provided with a series of upstanding posts 21 arranged in a circle around the inner portion thereof which support a yarn guiding ring 28 above the plate 9 and concentrically around the spindle I; said ring extending through the heads of the posts 21. The yarn guiding ring 28 is common to and functions with each of the units I5.

Each of the units I includes a lever 29 forming a part of a relatively heavy gauge strand wire which strand has a shaft portion 30 projecting at substantially a right angle from one end of the lever 29 and which is journalled in the bore 2| of the post I6 of its unit I5 for mounting the lever 29 for vertical swinging movement toward and away from the plate 9. The lever 29 extends inwardly toward the upper end of the spindle I0 and over the guide ring 28 and its inner, free end is bent to provide a downwardly projecting yarn guiding eye 3|. The strand of wire, designated generally 32 and including the portions 29, 39 and 3| also includes portions 33 and 34 constituting the opposite end of said strand and which are disposed at obtuse angles to another. The portion 33, which extends from the opposite end of the shaft portion 39 extends downwardly therefrom at an oblique angle, as seen in Figures 1 and 3 and the portion 34 projects downwardly and inwardly from the lower end of the portion 33 and terminating in an eye 35 to which is secured one end of a contractile coiled spring 36 which extends inwardly and upwardly therefrom and the opposite end of which is secured to a portion of the guide ring 28.

The yarn I4 of each bobbin I3 extends through an eye 37 which depends from the supporting plate 9 and thence through an eyelet 33 which extends through the supporting plate 9.

in a counterclockwise direction so that the yarn I4 in passing from the eyelet 38 around the post I6 and between the disks 22 and 23 extends in a direction generally circumferentially of the plate 9. It will be readily apparent that the yarn is frictionally gripped between the gripping elements 22 and 23 by the pressure of the spring 26 so that a considerable pull is required to be exerted thereon to cause the yarn to be fed off of the bobbin I3 and through the tensioning unit I5, as previously described. The eyelet end 3I of the lever 29 is urged upwardly by the pull exerted by the spring 36 on the portions 33 and 34 which tend to cause said portions and the lever 29 to swing upwardly on their pivot on the post I6. In the event that a sudden pull is exerted from the knitting machine on the yarn I4 the lever 29 and portions 33 and 34 will swing downwardly against the action of the spring 36 to permit the yarn to move toward the machine and the normal pressure or pull on the yarn will normally hold the lever 29 in a partially lowered position, as illustrated in Figure 1, so that when the pull on the yarn from the knitting machine diminishes the spring 36 will cause the lever 29 to swing upwardly to maintain the tension on the yarn and to prevent slack. In the event that too great a pull is exerted on the yarn I4 and which would otherwise possibly cause a breakage of the yarn due to the fact that it could not be fed between the gripping elements 22 and 23 at suflicient speed to accommodate this excess pull, the lever 29 will be swung downwardly below its position of Figure 1 by this excess pull and against the action of the spring 36 thereby causing the portion 34 to move into engagement with a portion of the outer upturned edge of the upper gripping element 23, as illustrated in Figures 3 and 4 and between the circumferential portion of said gripping element 23 where the yarn enters and leaves the gripping element so as to rock the gripping element 23 on a portion of the gripping element 22 as a fulcrum and against the action of the spring 26 and between the portions of said elements 22 and 23 which are engaged by the yarn I4 to thereby momentarily release the gripping engagement of the unit I5 with the yarn I4 so that the yarn can pass freely therethrough without being retarded. As the tension on the yarn I4 is thus minimized by this free feeding thereof, the spring 36 will react to swing the lever 29 and portions 33 and 34 upwardly to cause the portion 34 to move out of engagement with the periphery of the gripping element 23 so that the spring 26 can return said gripping element to its normal position of Figure 1 to again combine with 22 and 23 thereof and thence inwardly and under to a knitting machine, located therebelow, not

shown. As best seen in Figure 2, the eyelet 38 of each unit I5 is spaced from the post of said unit the gripping element 22 for frictionally engaging the yarn.

From the foregoing it will be readily apparent that a novel means of extremely simple construction has been provided and whereby the gripping engagement with the yarn may be momentarily removed in response to an excess pull on the yarn to aiford a means to positively prevent an excess pull on the yarn and which would cause breakage. By varying the size of either the spring 26 or 36, the amount of pull required to permit the yarn to pass between the gripping elements or to permit the yarn to be released by the gripping elements, respectively, may be varied to adapt the unit I5 to yarns or threads of different strengths.

It will be readily apparent that each of the gripping units I5 will function independently of each of the other units and that any number of such units may be provided each to function with a bobbin containing yarn for feeding the yarn or thread from the device I to a knitting machine, not shown and under control so that substantially a uniform tension will be maintained on the yarn at all times and as it is fed to the machine.

Various modifications and changes are contemplated and may obviously be resorted to, without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as hereinafter defined by the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A yarn tensioning and controlling device comprising a post around a portion of which yarn is adapted to be passed, a pair of gripping elements mounted on said post and between which the yarn passes to be gripped thereby, spring means bearing on one of said gripping elements and urging it into engagement with the other gripping element for yieldably gripping the yarn therebetween, said gripping element being mounted for sliding and oscillating movement on the post, a swingably mounted tensioning member supported on said post over which the yarn is adapted to pass from the post, resilient means urging said tensioning member to swing upwardly for exerting a tensioning pull on the yarn, and an arm mounted to swing in unison with said tensioning member and disposed for movement into engagement with said aforementioned gripping element when the tensioning member is drawn downwardly by an excessive pull on the yarn for rocking said aforementioned gripping element on the other gripping element as a fulcrum to displace the first mentioned gripping element out of engagement with the yarn.

2. A yarn tensioning device as in claim 1, said tensioning member comprising a lever swingably supported on the post and having a free end provided with an eye through which the yarn extends and from which the yarn passes in a downward direction, and yarn guide means disposed between the post and the eye of said lever and beneath said lever under which the yarn passes from the post to the lever eye.

3. A yarn tensioning means as in claim 1, a support from which said post rises and on which the last mentioned, lower yarn gripping element is supported, said first mentioned, upper gripping element being substantially dish shaped and having a central opening for loosely enga ing the post, and said arm having a portion disposed to bear upon a part of the upturned flanged edge of said upper gripping element when the yarn tensioning member is swung downwardly.

4. A yarn tensioning and controlling mechanism adapted to be interposed between a source of yarn supply and a machine to which the yarn is being fed, comprising a fixed gripping member and a movable grippin member between which the yarn is adapted to pass, a support for said gripping members and on which the movable gripping member is slidably and swingably supported, spring means urging said movable gripping member toward the fixed gripping memher for frictionally gripping the yarn therebetween, a tensioning member swingably mounted on said support, resilient mean urging the tensioning member in a direction away from that in which the yarn is fed from the tensioning mechanism and over which the yarn is adapted to pass from the gripping members for tensioning the yarn being fed from said mechanism, and an element mounted to swing on the support in unison with said tensioning member and disposed for movement into engagement with a portion of the movable gripping member when the tensioning member is swung on its pivot and against the action of said resilient means by an excessive pull on the yarn for rocking the movable gripping member on a portion of the fixed gripping member for displacing said movable gripping member out of engagement with the yarn.

5. A yarn tensioning and controlling mechanism as in claim 4, and guide means for guiding the yarn in its passage into and out of engagement with said gripping members to cause the yarn to be engaged only by portions of the gripping members spaced from the portions thereof on which the movable gripping member is fulcrumed.

6. A yarn tensioning and controlling mechanism as in claim 4, a strand of wire having an intermediate portion journalled in said support and an end portion disposed at an angle to said intermediate portion for swinging movement relatively to the support and forming said tensioning member, the other end of the wire being disposed at an angle to said intermediate portion and to the first mentioned end and forming the element for engagement with the movable gripping member for causing said gripping member to be rocked on the fixed gripping member.

'7. A yarn tensioning and controlling mechanism as in claim 4, a strand of wire having an intermediate portion journalled in said support and an end portion disposed at an angle to said intermediate portion for swinging movement relatively to the support and forming said tensioning member, the other end of the wire being disposed at an angle to said intermediate portion and to the first mentioned end and forming the element for engagement with the movable gripping member for causing said gripping member to be rocked on the fixed gripping member, and said resilient means having one end secured to the last mentioned end of said strand for urging said last mentioned end of the strand to swing on the support of the pivot in a direction away from the gripping members.

8. A yarn tensioning and controlling mechanism as in claim 4, and yarn guide means for guiding the yarn in its movement toward the gripping members and in its movement from the gripping members and toward said tensioning member for causing the yarn to be engaged only by portions of said gripping members and spaced from the portions thereof on which the movable gripping member fulcrums.

JAMES PAUL WILSON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,356,026 Veilleux et a1. Oct. 19, 1920 1,956,945 Easton May 1, 1934 2,250,701 Briggs July 29, 1941 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 545,208 Great Britain May 14, 1942 

